National Army Trains Military Observers for UN Missions

CHISINAU, September 20, 2013 — A group of servicemembers of the National Army learn about UN-led peacekeeping operations within a training course conducted, during September 9-27, by the Continuous Training Center of Military Academy of the Armed Forces “Alexandru cel Bun”.

According to the head of the course, Maj. Ion Cozma, 17 servicemembers selected for this course are taught by Moldovan officers that participated in UN missions, as well as by other experts from the National Army. “The training process consists of theoretical and practical classes that aim at preparing the military for participation in UN operations as military observers”, the quoted source said.

Maj. Cozma stated that, during the theoretical part of the course held at the Continuous Training Center, the participants learn basic information about world peacekeeping missions, legal aspects of peacekeeping operations, media relations and interviewing techniques, strategic goals of UN missions and other important issues.

According to the source, the practical part will cover the last week of the course, which the servicemembers will spend at Bulboaca Training Center. They will be engaged in a peacekeeping scenario with events and incidents that may happened in such kind of missions. “The future peacekeepers will perform actions in seven training sites, including patrol, negotiation and mediation, military observer hostage survival and conduct at checkpoints, team site situation monitoring, basic UN verification and investigation techniques, as well as other activities typical of a UN military observer. At the end, the participants will be evaluated based on learned material and practical assignments”, Maj. Cozma specified.

The source also said that the training is conducted in English in compliance with the training standards of the UN military observers.

The UN Military Observers Training Course for Moldovan officers has been held twice a year since 2007. The National Army currently has 11 servicemembers deployed to Un mission in Liberia, South Sudan and Cote d’Ivoire.

The National Army started deploying servicemembers to UN peacekeeping missions in 2003. Since then, 86 Moldovan officers participated in UN-led missions abroad.